Detachable grain door unit for box freight cars



A ug. 15, 1939. J. D. WATERBURY DETACHABLE GRAIN DOOR UNIT FOR BOX FREIGHT CARS Sv .Ndm Q vm w //Q R NN/ mvVb wi m .V/l//V/V/v/V/V/,V//V/,C//V//I//l l C k A R. m w l r I l f wl I I w.\| W a ////7//// 4 f S w 2 a a y /Q w /`r N` n# wm 3 k\ 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. lO, 1936 ATTORNEYS l Aug. 15, 1939. J D* WATERBURY 169,889

DETACHABLE GRAIN DOOR UNIT FOR BOX FREIGHT CARS Filed Dec. lO, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR (a/1MM .0. I BY.

ATTORNEYS Aug. 15, 1939.

J. WATERBURY DETACHABLE GRAIN DOOR UNIT FOR BOX FREIGHT CAR Filed Dec. l0, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Rw? P7 M.. w fo gn. e

ATTO RNEYS Patented Aug. 15, 1939 orifice DTACHABLE GRAIN DOOR UNIT FOR BOX FRIEIIGHT CARS James D. Waterbury, Utica, N. Y.

' Application December 10, 1936, Serial No. 115,159

6 Claims.

This invention relates to a detachable grain door unit for box freight cars and particularly to a separate door and door frame therefor especially adapted to hold grain and with the door and its frame assembled as a unit and removabe or replaceable as .a unit relative to the freight car.

The purpose of my present invention is to provide aI grain door for freight cars of new and improved construction and one wherein the grain door proper is separately mounted in its own door frame andY housing so as to slide either vertically or horizontally therein and with the whole device .adapted to be readily attached as a unit to a freight car and to be detached therefrom as readily.

A further purpose is to provide a grain door for freight cars including as above mentioned the door and its frame and housing where simple but effective means are provided lforming a complete housing for the grain door when moved away from the doorway of the freight car and with the unitary structure also providing a slideway for allowing the door to be moved vertically in its frame opposite the doorway of the freight car so ,as to provide an exit for the grain beneath the grain door.

A further purpose is to provide. a structure of the class described wherein the housing and frame for the grain door are strong and well braced and compact in structure so that they will securely hold the grain door in any of its allowable positions and so that the structure as a unit including the door may be removed bodily without weakening the structure or rendering it liable to be injured or any of its parts lost.

A further purpose is to provide a structure of the class described which is complete in itself and of simple outline so that it may be attached by simple connections to practically any standard freight car without alterations or modifications or mutilation.

Further purposes of my invention will' appear from the specification and claims herein.

Fig. l is a side elevation of my grain door construction embodying the door proper and itsI framework and housing seen from the inside oi a freight car to which it has been applied, the grain door being shown partly open, that is slid part way horizontally into its housing.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view on line 2-2 of Fig. l but showing the grain door closed and locked.

Fig. 3 is an isometric projection of the framework and housing of my device but for the. sake of' clearness without the door itself in the frame.

Fig. 4 is an isometric view of the door proper apart from its frame and housing.

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 1 of the door proper, its frame, but only the adjacent part of (Cl. ZAL-27) the housing, the door being shown raised vertically in its frame so as to provide an outlet below the grain door.

Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional view on line E -ii of Fig. 5, the grain door being still in vertically raised position.

Fig. 'Z is a transverse sectional view on line I- of Fig. 1 showing the door in lowered position but in the door frame thereof.

Fig. 8 is a transverse sectional view on line 8--8 of Fig. 1 and so showing part of the door as slid horizontally into its housing.

Fig. 9 is a horizontal sectional view similar to Fig. 2 but with the door slid to its full extent into its housing to one side of the door frame of the grain door.

Referring to the drawings in a more particular description, it will be seen that a freight car grain door embodying my invention comprises an open frame I2, a housing I3 projecting laterally from one side of the frame and a door proper i4 slidingly mounted in the said frame and adapted to be slid laterally into the housing.

The frame I2 is of rectangular construction and has its aperture I5 of approximately the size both as to height and width as the standard doorway i5 of the freight car I'l. The frame I2 is conveniently formed either of wood or of metal or a suitable combination thereof and comprises opposite side posts I8 andiii connected respectively at the top and bottom by a top 2U and a doorsill 2l.

Rigidly projecting from one side of this frame, that is at the right side as my device is shown in the different views thereof, there is provided the 'housing I3. It will be understood that'the frame and housing are connected so as to be one rigid unit and that slidingly mounted in said unit is the grain door proper. This nit is constructed as a separate structure and is intended to be placed bodily against the inner face of the door frame 22 of the freight car itself Il and fastened thereto by suitable members as by a plurality of brackets 23 preferably permanently fastened tothe frame and housing unit as by screws or bolts 2li passing through the various brackets into the edge members of the combined unit. Lug screws 25 or the equivalent are then inserted through suitable holes provided in the projecting portions of the brackets 23 with said lug screws projecting into the freight car il opposite the respective brackets 23. K

In the aperture face of the side posts I8 and I9 of the frame there are provided slideways 26 and 21 respectively. These slideways extend from the doorsill 2| to the top 20 of the frame and provide means for slidingly mounting the opposite vertical sides of the .grain door per se in said frame, As will be seen from several views of the drawings, the said door I4 is of appreciably less height than the frame I2 so that when the door is in its lowermost position there will be a space 28 at the top of this grain door frame which will not be closed by the grain door I4. The tight joint required for a grain door of a freight car does not need to extend to the top of the regular freight car door frame 22 because a freight car cannot be lled to the top with grain. Furthermore, one of the advantages of my construction is to allow the grain door I4 itself to be moved vertically upwardly in the frame I2 and allow a space 29 below the bottom of the raised door I4 and the doorsill 2l. The position of the parts in this situation is illustrated in Figs. and 6. This position allows the grain door I4 to be raised from the door sill so that the grain may be allowed to slide out from the freight car through the said lower opening 29. It will be understood of course that in many cases especially during the first interval of time when the car is being unloaded the door I4 will not be raised to the full extent of its possible movement, but may be raised only say two or three inches so as to allow a limited supply of grain to flow outward according to the facilities for receiving or carrying away such grain when it is being unloaded.

Assuming that the frame I2 is built in the main of wood, the slideways 26 and 21 may conveniently be constructed as follows: The left hand post I8 as seen in Figs. 1, 3 and 5 may be composed of three parts, namely an outer board 39 which will be against the inner surface of the freight car, an inner board 3I spaced therefrom and preferably of the same width as the outer board 39 and, thirdly, a middle or intermediate board 32 of less width than the boards 30 and 3| so that when these parts are assembled with their vertical left hand edges flush with each other as seen in Figs. 2, 3 and 9, the right hand edges of the outer and inner boards 30 and 3| will project farther towards the aperture of the frame than does the right hand edge of the middle board 32 and so there will be produced the slideway 26 already mentioned.

The slideway 21 in the right hand post I9 is conveniently formed in the same way, namely by said post being composed of an outer board 33 which will be against the inner surface of the freight car, an inner board 34 spaced therefrom and thirdly a middle or intermediate board 35 of less width than the boards 33 and 34 so that when these three parts are assembled the left hand edges of the outer and inner boards 33 and 34 will project farther towards the aperture of the frame than does the left hand edge of the middle board 35 so that there will be produced the right hand slideway 21. It isto be noticed however, that this middle or intermediate board 35 in the right hand post I9 is not present in the part of the post that extends from its bottom to the level of the top edge of the door I4 when in lowered position. The opening of a standard freight car door is seven feet six inches high and on that basis I preferably form the grain door proper I4 of my device six feet high thus leaving a space of about eighteen inches in height over the top of the grain door I4 when the grain door is in its lowered position as shown in Figs. l and 7. On this basis the intermediate board 35 will be omitted for slightly more than the lower six feet of the right hand post I9 so that the `slideway 21 for six feet up from the door sill will extend clear through the post I9 and in fact this space between the outer and middle boards 33 and 34 of the post below the short length of intermediate board 35 forms a part of the chamber 36 formed in the main by the housing which extends to the right from the ost I9.

p The top 20 of the frame rigidly connects the upper ends of the two door posts I8 and I9 but is of simple construction in that there does not need to be provided upon said top 20 any slideway for the door I4 as in the upper position of the said door I4 as shown in Fig. 5 the door simply comes up iiush with or into contact with the said top 2D. But the joint or contact between the door I4 and the top 20 does not need to be grain-tight as under no circumstance can the grain come this high up in the freight car.

On the other hand, the door sill 2I is provided in its upper face with a slideway 31. This slideway is in line with the two slideways 26 and 21 in the respective door posts I8 and I9 and is wide enough to slidingly mount therein the bottom edge of the grain door I4. Assuming that the construction is to be made principally of wood, a convenient form of making this door sill 2l as illustrated in Figs. 2, 3 and 6 in that a strong middle strip 38 slightly wider than the thickness of the door I4 has secured thereto on its outer and inner sides the slightly higher cleats 39 and 4I! respectively. These three pieces are assembled with their lower edges flush with each other and adapted to rest conveniently upon the floor 4I of the freight car. Accordingly the cleats 39 and 40 project upwardly farther than the middle strip 38, thus forming the said lower slideway 31. This lower slideway it will be seen guides the bottom edge of the door I4 when it is being slid towards or from closed position. When the door is either closed or partly opened the said door sill and its slideway 31 securely hold the bottom edge of the door against displacement either from the weight of the grain inside of the freight car or from any other force brought against the door I4. l In order to brace the upper portion of the door I4 against the weight and pressure of grain in the freight car and especially to aid in keeping the door in proper position when the door is moved part way from the left hand door post I8, there is provided a bar 42 having its opposite ends strongly secured to the door ports I8 and I9. This bar is preferably placed vertically about as indicated in Figs. 1, 6 and 7 so as to be on a line with the upper two or three inches of the door I4 when the door is in lowered position. In practice I nd that this brace bar 42 only needs to be on the outside of the door I4. All the substantial strain upon the door comes from within as from the grain weight and pressure already mentioned. When the door is in lowered position and part way open as in Fig. l. the lower slideway 31 in the door sill and the housing of a considerable part of the right hand side of the door as the parts are seen in the drawings herein between the full width of the two parts of the right hand post I9 beside the extending of a part of the door at its right hand side into the chamber 33 of the housing I3 holds the door securely in place against any ordinary pressure that will be placed against it from the outside. The brace bar 42 it will be understood is located as close as possible to the cuter face of the door I4, but still allows the door I4 to be slid upwardly therepast when it is desired to raise the door vertically after it has been brought into the left hand slideway 26.

` 5d whereby the bolt may be rotated by hand in The housing i3 already mentioned as extending to the right from the right hand door post i9' and providing the inside chamber 3d for the door ifi is so constructed as to be rigid with the door frame already mentioned and also so constructed as to provide a housing that will completely enclose the door lll when said door is in lowered position and slid open so as not to project at all from the right hand door post i9. This housing is also so constructed as to allow the door to be easily slid thereinto from its position in the door frame and to be easily slid from the housing into or partly into the said door frame. To this end the bottom part of the housing forms a slideway '53 in line with and on the level of the bottom slideway 3l of the door sill 2i. Accordingly the housing i3 includes a middle bottom strip 38 which conveniently and preferably is really an integral extension of the middle strip 38 of the opposite door sill 2i. By making these parts integral, one element is provided tending to not only make the sli-deways 3l and i3 on the same level, but also there is provided a means for making the door frame and the housing strongly and rigidly connected. At the top of the housing i3 there is provided a middle strip lli having its left hand end adjacent the lower portion of the short intermediate board 35 at the upper part of the right hand door post le. This piece ill is so located as to have its lower edge slightly above the top edge or the door l@ when the door is slid into the housing as particularly appears from Figs. l, 5 and 8. The strip ifi also is slightly thicker than the door i@ and is in the same vertical plane as the intermediate board and the bottom strip 3B of the housing. The right hand extremities or this upper strip lil-l and the bottom strip 36 are rigidly connected by a vertically placed post i5 which is conveniently of the same thickness as the parts iii and 38.

Means are provided for positively and tightly locking the door ifi in closed position, that is when the door is moved to the left as shown in the drawings to occupy the full width of the opening l5 of the frame l2 and withl the door at the lowermost position in the frame. Suitable means for so locking the door may conveniently consist, as shown clearly in the drawings, of a pair of crank-arm bolts 4S, one at each side of the door, and each passing through the inner member of the door frame Si or 3d, then through one of the upper apertures El in the door itself and into a nut 4l in the outer member of the door frame. Each of these bolts d5 as best appears in Fig. 2 has a screw-threaded section at its outer end to engage the nut il which is preferably countersunk from the outside into the outer member 3% or 33 of the sides of the door frame i2. To prevent undue wear a metal washer i8 is countersunk into the inner surface of the inner side frame members 3l and 3d which washer is engaged vby the adjacent outer surface of a collar d@ located rigidly'on the bolt towards the inner end of'its shank and so placed as to engage the washer when the threaded end of the bolt has a good hold in the nut. At the inner end of the bolt it is provided with a short crank-arm 52 terminating in an offset handle an obvious manner. Assuming that the door has been placed in closed position, the two upper bolt-receiving apertures 5l in the opposite sides j of the door will be in alignment with the corresponding holes in the washers 43 and nuts M in the sides of the door frame.

Upon inserting the two crank arm bolts in the aligned sets of holes therefor and turning the crank arms of the' bolts the screw-threaded ends thereof will engage the respective nuts. This action it will be seen by causing the bolts to go through the two upper apertures in the door positively locks the door down and from being opened. Furthermore, by tightening up the bolts the pressure of the collars t9 upon the outside washer together with the pull of the bolt upon the nut located in the outer member oi each side frame will draw the parts of the frame and the door together more or less so as to overcome any rattle or looseness and so prevent the grain from working past the door into the housing.

Preferably means are provided to loosely connect these bolts to their respective sides of the door irame so that they will not be lost even when not being used. A convenient means for so loosely attaching the bolts to the frame and yet allowing the bolts to be readily inserted or removed and rotated as required consists of a screw eye 53 provided at the inner surface of the side posts i8 and i9. From each eye there extends a short length of chain 54 the free end of which is loosely secured to the inner end of the shank of the bolt as to the neck portion of said bolt provided between the collar i9 and an enlargement 55 provided at the extreme inner end ci the bolt where the crank arm 52 begins. When the door is opened, these bolts may hang down from the side posts of the door as shown with the left hand bolt in Fig. 5 or the bolt may be left sticking out from the inner frame member of the side post. If it is desired to positively lock the door in inward open position, the right hand bolt may be used to engage the left hand upper aperture in the door as shownv in Fig. 9.

When the door is in upper position in the grain door frame as shown in Fig. 5, the lower set of bolt-receiving apertures 5I in the door are in alignment with the holes in nuts d? in the outer members of the door frame and also in alignment with the holes in the metal washers 48 in the inner side frame members: 3l and 313, so that the crank arm bolts 46 can be inserted and used to hold and lock the door in this position as has already been described in detail for the down and closed position and illustrated in Fig. 2.

Purposely no projections are provided upon the inner surface of the door for raising the door as such projections would require corresponding clearances to be cut in the adjacent surface of the right hand side member 34 of the door frame in order to slide the door open and such necessary clearances would allow the grain to sift through such clearances into the chamber of the housing and that grain would prevent cr seriously delay or impede the door from sliding into the chamber of the housing. In practice the grain door is not opened upward from inside the car but is easily and quickly opened by a man applying a pinch bar to the door fromthe outside of the car.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a readily attachable and detachable grain door unit for application to the inside of a box freight car, the combination of an open frame and doorsill, a door of less height than said aperture and slidingly mounted in the slideways of the said posts for vertical movement therein and a housing extending laterally at one side of the frame and interiorly as high as said door and having at its bottom a slideway in continuation of the slideway in the doorsill, said housing being grain-tight and composed of two complete, spaced walls connected permanently and rigidly by a top, a back strip, said bottom slideway and the adjoining side post of the said open frame, the side post adjacent the housing having its slideway extended through the post for the height of the door whereby the door may be slid laterally partway or wholly from the door aperture into said housing.

2. In a readily attachable and detachable grain door unit for application to the inside of a box freight car, the combination of an open frame having a top, a doorsill and opposite side posts, the aperture of said frame being approximately the size of the doorway of a box freight car, slideways in the aperture faces of said side posts and doorsill, a door of less height than said aperture and slidingly mounted in the slideways of the said posts for vertical movement therein and a housing extending laterally at one side of the frame and interiorly as high as said door and having at its bottom a slideway in continuation of the slideway in the doorsill, said housing being grain-tight and composed of two complete, spaced walls connected permanently and rigidly by a top, a back strip, said bottom slideway and the adjoining side post of the said open frame, the side post adjacent the housing having its slideway extended through the post for the height of the door whereby the door may be slid laterally partway or wholly from the door aperture into said housing, said housing and open frame movably but permanently and non-removably holding said door whether said housing and open frame be attached to a freight car or detached therefrom, and said open frame and housing and contained door being attachable to and removable from the freight car as a complete unit.

3. In a readily attachable and detachable grain door unit for application to the inside of a box freight car. the combination of an open frame having a top, a doorsill and opposite side posts, the aperture of said frame being approximately the size of the doorway of a box freight car, slideways in the aperture faces of said side posts and doorsill, a door of less height than said aperture and slidingly mounted in the slideways of the said posts for vertical movement therein, a

housing extending laterally at one side of the frame and interiorly as high as said door and having at its bottom a slideway in continuation of the slideway in the doorstill, said housing being grain-tight and composed of two complete, spaced walls connected permanently and rigidly by a top, a back strip, said bottom slideway and the adjoining side post of the said open frame, the side post adjacent the housing having its slideway extended through the post for the height of the door whereby the door may be slid laterally partway` or wholly from the door aperture into said housing, and means adjacent the edges of the frame and housing for detachably securing the structure as a unit to the inside of a freight car. v

4. In a readily attachable and detachable grain door unit for application to the inside of a box freight car, the combination of an open frame having a top, a doorsill and opposite side posts, the aperture of said frame being approximately the size of the doorway of a box freight car, slideways in the aperture faces of said side posts and doorsill, a door of less height than said aperture and slidingly mounted in the slideways of the said posts for vertical movement therein, a housing extending laterally at one side of the frame and interiorly as high as said door and having at its bottom a slideway in continuation of the slideway in the doorsill, said housing being grain-tight and composed of two complete, spaced walls connected permanently and rigidly by a top, a back strip, said bottom slideway and the adjoining side post of the said open frame, the side post adjacent the housing having its slideway extended through the post for the height of the door whereby the door may be slid laterally partway or wholly from the door aperture into said housing, and means including brackets secured adjacent the edges of the frame and housing for detachably securing the structure as a unit to the inside of a freight car.

5. In a readily attachable and detachable grain door unit for application to the inside of a box freight car, the combination of an open frame having a top, a doorsill, an intermediate horizontal brace bar, and opposite side posts, the aperture of said frame being approximately the size of the doorway of a box freight car, slideways in the aperture faces of said side posts and doorsill, a door of less height than said aperture and slidingly mounted in the slideways of the said posts for vertical movement therein, said brace bar being immediately outside the path of .the door and opposite the upper part of the door when the door is in lowered position in the frame and a housing extending laterally at one side of the frame and interiorly as high as said door and having at its bottom a slideway in continuation of the slideway in the doorsill, said housing being grain-tight and composed of two complete, spaced walls connected permanently and rigidly by a top, a back strip, said bottom slideway and the adjoining side post of the said open frame, the side post adjacent the housing having its slideway extended through the post for the height of the door whereby the door may be slid laterally partway or wholly from the door aperture into said housing.

6. In a readily attachable and detachable grain door unit for application to the inside of a box freight car, the combination of an open frame having a top', a doorsill and opposite side posts, the aperture of said frame being approximately the size of the doorway of a box freight car, slideways in the aperture faces of said side posts and doorsill, a door of less height than said aperture and slidingly mounted in the slideways of the said posts for Vertical movement therein, a housing extending laterally at one side of the frame and interiorly as high as said door and having at its bottom a slideway in continuation of the slideway in the doorsill, said housing being grain-tight and composed of two complete, spaced walls connected permanently and rigidly by a top, a back strip, said bottom slideway and the adjoining side post of the said open frame, the side post adjacent the housing having its slideway extended through the post for the height of the door whereby the door may be slid laterally partway or wholly from the door aperture into said housing, and means cooperating with said door and said attachable door frame for locking the door in closed and down position and in closed and raised position.

JAMES D. WATERBURY. 

